


Trouble

by writingAmateur



Category: Homestuck
Genre: Gang, Gang affiliation, Gangs, M/M, Violence
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-01-15
Updated: 2013-07-19
Packaged: 2017-11-25 16:18:49
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 10
Words: 9,641
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/640726
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/writingAmateur/pseuds/writingAmateur
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>John's in danger, and it's all your fault.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Ten Feet Tall and Bullet Proof.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Your name is Dave Strider.

Your name is Dave Strider, and you’re in trouble. 

To be fair, you’ve been in trouble for a while now. Ever since you got wrapped up in Ampora’s gang. It wasn’t like you meant to, but they offered you a position, and when Ampora offers you a position in his gang, he’s not taking no for an answer. It’s accept or die. 

You don’t mind being in the gang that much, so long as they know your terms. You’re not taking any one out, and John, your boyfriend, stays out of it, no matter what, or you’re gone. No matter what the consequences are. They agreed, but that didn’t mean much to you. You still have many sleepless nights, worrying about John. If they decided that he was a threat somehow, could you stop them from hurting him? Or worse? 

You really hope you don’t have to find out. 

Things are going well, so far, you think. John knows you’re officially in the Ampora gang, and though he’s not happy about it, he’s accepted it. He knows you can’t tell him much about it, though he always tries to ask… Like he’s doing now.

“Come on, Daaaave! I just wanna know what it’s like to be in a gang. Is it cool, like it is in the movies, or is it scary? Who else is in the gang anyway? What do you do all day, anyway? Do you—“

“Jesus Christ, Egbert, do you ever shut up?” You ask him, exasperated. He laughed. 

“Sorry. I’m just curious.” He replies, smiling that buck-toothed smile you love. 

“I know you are, but jeez, take a breath, will ya?” You say. “You know I can’t answer any questions about it. The more you know, the more dangerous it is for both of us. So quit prying.” You say, reaching out mussing up his dark hair. He complains loudly, but you just roll your eyes at him from behind the safety of your glasses. You’re sure he somehow knows, like always, because he sticks his tongue out at you. 

“Well, if you’re not gonna tell me anything…” John says, pouting. You frown at him.

“Don’t get all pouty with me, you know why I can’t.” You reply. He sighs.

“Yeah, yeah, yeah. But I can take care of myself, Dave! You don’t need to worry about me.”

You get this sick feeling in your stomach, like you always do when John says something like that. Because you know he can’t. Your boyfriend isn’t tough in any way. He’s cute, he’s smiley, and he’s more innocent than your average five year old in most aspects. Those are the things you love about him, but you know sometimes his naivety can get him into trouble.

You really hope it doesn’t get him involved in your mess. He tilts his head at you, obviously wondering why you haven’t laughed or at least said something. 

You slowly reach over and pull him over into your lap. “John. The thing is, that I do worry about you. You think you’re ten feet tall and bullet proof sometimes, you know? And that…” You trail of. You were about to say ‘scares me.’ But that’s not right. Not really. “That terrifies me.” Better. 

John leans against you, biting his lip as he thinks about this. “But you’re not scared of anything.” He pointed out. 

You drop your head against his shoulder. Is that all he got out of your speech? Typical.

“I am scared for you, John. Someone has to be, and God knows you aren’t.” You reply. There’s a long pause, and then he sighs. You don’t know if that means he agrees with you, or if he just doesn’t see the point in arguing it anymore. 

“Just… don’t do anything stupid, John. Please?” You ask, looking at him. He nods slowly, and you feel at least a little relieved. 

For now.


	2. Testing the Boundaries.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ampora delivers a warning.

“Strider!” 

You glance up, irritated by Ampora’s retarded accent. “What?” You ask, narrowing your eyes at him behind your shades. Today the dreaded leader of the gang decided to wear pajama-like purple and black pants and that ridiculous cape he insists on wearing. His hair is styled up with so much hair gel you wonder how he has enough money to pay for it all. You idly wonder if he has a truck deliver some every week. 

Somewhere in the middle of your silent ramblings, he began speaking. You tune in to what he’s saying. “… and if you do it again, we’re gonna have some personal problems, got it, Strider?” He asks. You stare at him.

“No, I don’t actually. What’d I do now?” You ask, knowing agreeing to something Eridan said without hearing all of it was the equivalent of selling your soul to the devil in exchange for a can of soup. 

He gives you a hateful look. You wonder for a moment if he practices that look in the mirror, or if that’s just his standard look. “I SAID you missed the meeting yesterday. Why weren’t you here?” Only he says it in this horrendous accent that you hate. Wuhwhy indeed, fishface.

“I was busy.” You reply. You were with John yesterday. But you can’t say that.

“With what, your boyfriend?” He snaps. You stare at him. 

“Of course not. I was just busy.” You say.

“What if I don’t believe you?” He asks. 

“Why don’t I give a damn?” You reply. You stand up and stare at him. “What are you going to do? Kick me out of the gang? Hit me?” You ask. You’ve been pretty lenient with this joker, you’re not sure what you’re doing right now.

It’s stupid to stand up to him. You know he can get you into trouble, but you’re really fed up with him.

“No. I think we’ll just have a chat with Egbert. You know, your little boy-toy.” He says, smirking. He knows John is the only way to get to you. You don’t care about wounds, or getting kicked out of the gang. In fact, you’d almost welcome them. But getting John hurt? That’s unthinkable.

“I’ll make it to the meetings.” You say slowly, before walking away. 

You really hate that guy.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The chapters are kind of short, but expect them to get longer as the plot progresses!


	3. Dinner Dates.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> John and Dave go out on a dinner date with Rose, Kanaya and Jade.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Pchoo, okay. I kind of wanted to expand upon how Dave and John live, and give a bit more information, so this is sort of a filler chapter, I guess? It still builds upon the plot, though!

It’s one of your days off, and John has insisted on a play date. You end up sitting at a table in one of those nice outdoor restaurants, surrounded by women. And John.

John invited Rose and Kanaya, and Rose invited Jade. Jade’s chattering away about how she almost broke her house playing with her monster of a dog, Bec. It’s about the size of a bear.

You’re glad Jade never feels like a third wheel with you four. Er… You guess it’s a fifth wheel. Anyway, you’re glad she fits in so smoothly, and doesn’t feel awkward about being the only single one at the table. She continues chattering away, and you listen with a cool look of interest. John is messing around with your hand, twisting your rings around and playing with your fingers. He likes to do that sometimes, though you’re not sure why. Probably just because he’s fidgety. 

Kanaya is trading casual looks with Rose, grinning cattily at each other. After Jade finishes her thrilling anecdote, Kanaya looks up.

“How are you these days, boys?” She asks curiously. “I have not seen you in almost… a month?”

John grins. “We’re doing pretty great! And I know we haven’t met up in a while. Mostly because Dave is busy with all of his g—“ 

You nudge him, frowning disapprovingly at him. 

“His… uh… garage stuff.” John said, his eyes slightly alarmed behind his glasses. Yep, that’s your man. Bout as subtle as a bull in a china shop.

“You work with cars?” Rose asked, giving you that cat and mouse look. The one that says she knows exactly what’s going on, though you’re sure she doesn’t.

“Not really. Just mine. The mustang’s been acting up recently.” Your lie is smooth. John looked over at you and his hands stilled. He doesn’t really care for lying, and you know that. You always hate lying in front of him, and you hate asking him to lie, however subtly, even more. 

“Oh, really?” Rose asked, tilting her head. “But you drove it here, didn’t you?”

You narrowed her eyes at her, even though she couldn’t see it. “Yes. I think I have it mostly fixed.” You said. She nodded, looking at you doubtfully. 

Jade hesitated. “So, um. How’s school been going, John?” She asked. John jumped straight from high school to college, something you were very proud of him for. You got roped into the gang at the end of senior year, and simply didn’t have the time to go. You never really wanted to go to college, anyway, though you do wish you could be with John. You’d probably even sit through his ridiculous movie-maker-in-training classes. John decided he wanted to be a director or producer in the movie industry.

“Pretty good. I’m passing everything, at the very least.” He said, shrugging modestly. You frowned. 

“I’ve seen your grades, Egbert. They’re phenomenal.” You say disapprovingly. You don’t like when he doesn’t give himself the credit he deserves. He blushed.

“I’m third in my class.” He said. “But it’s really not that much of a feat. As long as you do your work, you get good grades.” 

“Yeah, and your work is like fifteen page essays on camera angles and how to make them look dramatic.” You said, exasperated. He rolled his eyes, shoving your arm.

Jade smiled fondly at your bickering. “What about you, Rose? How’s your book going?” She asked, pushing the conversation along. You could always count on Jade to get your mismatched group through the awkward moments. 

“It’s going. You know how it is, working its way through the stages. I finished the manuscript last night, and I’m sending it into my editor tomorrow.” She said, giving her a small smile.

“It’s her best one yet, in my opinion.” Kanaya said proudly. 

“What about you, Jade?” John interjected. “How’s the whole sciencey thing going?”

Jade had been accepted into an elite science program that transferred her from college to college, allowing her to work with them on a series of projects. “Very well.” She replied. “For the most part, all the experiments are working on environmental things. You know, recycling, cleaning the earth and all that. I think Carrington Academy is close to making a generator that runs on cooking oil.” She said, nodding. “It’s not very powerful, maybe enough to power a small TV, but it’s definitely a start.” 

“That’s amazing.” He told her earnestly. That was when your food arrived. It was mostly quiet after that, since everyone was eating. There were a few more small-talk comments, and then Kanaya got called into work. She worked at a small clothing store, helping them design and sell clothes. Rose had to go with her, since they’d come in the same car. You, Jade and John decided to disperse after that. You offered to take Jade home, but she declined. She’d, ironically, taken her Harley here. 

At first, she’d bought the motorcycle as a joke, since it was a Harley, but once she got her motorcycle license and drove it around, she decided she loved it and wouldn’t let anyone near it. After that, you and John went home.

After you both arrived home and got settled inside your small one-bedroom apartment, you realized something was bothering John. He was sitting on the other side of the loveseat, leaning against the arm-rest instead of you, like he normally would. He was biting his lip with his oversized front teeth and staring at the blank TV screen in silence. You sighed, and nudged him with your foot.

“What’s wrong?” You asked, even though you’re pretty sure you know.

“Why’d we have to lie to Rose like that? I mean… I dunno. I don’t like lying to her.” He confessed, frowning. 

“You know why we had to lie, John. I can’t put her danger, too. It’s bad enough that you know what I am, I can’t be dragging the girls into it, too.” 

“What you are, is my boyfriend.” He protested. “It’s not like you could help it, anyway! Eridan forced you into the gang!” 

“I know that, John.” You said tightly. “I’m just saying that I can’t tell her, or Kanaya, or Jade. The only reason I told you is because you thought I was cheating on you, I was out so much. Which is positively ridiculous, by the way,” You tell him. 

“What else was I supposed to think?!” He cried. “You were out all hours of the night, never told me where you were going, and always came back smelling like sweat and smoke, when you don’t smoke! Now will you stop throwing that in my face already?” He asked, glaring at you. You held your hands up.

“I’m not going to argue with you, John.” You said slowly. “I’m just saying that I have a reason for lying to her.” 

“I know.” John replied curtly. “It’s fine. I’m going to bed.” He got up and walked into the bedroom, shutting the door a tad more forcefully than normal. You exhaled heavily, pulling off your shades to pinch the bridge of your nose. Fights like these were getting more and more frequent with John, and you hated them. It wasn’t like you could help any of this. You couldn’t not show up to the meetings, or John would get hurt. But every time you did go, John got more and more curious and more and more offended when you couldn’t give him the answers. There was just no winning with him right now.


	4. Stupidity.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ampora is incredibly moronic.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> All of these characters are human-stuck.

“We’re planning something big.” Eridan announced. You looked up from your phone, which you were idly playing Tetris on. Normally you would’ve been texting John, but he was still angry at you over the whole Rose thing. You’ve been pretty apprehensive about him, lately. He hasn’t been the most understanding boyfriend, and you haven’t really been sure what to do about him.  
  
“We’ve got a big overthrow planned.” Eridan said quietly. The entire gang was here, since Ampora said he had a big announcement. You were all sitting on second-hand furniture at Ampora’s house that is considered the official gang hideout. Peixes, Ampora’s right hand woman, is perched on the couch’s arm rest next to you. It’s as far as she can get from Ampora. She hates him for forcing her into this gang, but she has no choice. He held the threat of killing her younger sister over her head, and everyone knew he would go through with it.  
  
Karkat was sprawled across the ground, leaning against the chair Caliborn sat in. Both of them are the most obnoxious people you’ve ever met, since they feel the need to practically scream at everyone and cuss to assert their dominance. They despised each other, but for some reason kept close.  
  
Latula and Cronus were sitting next to each other on the long couch, next to your older brother, Dirk. You hated that he was in the same gang as you, but to be fair, he was there first. Gamzee is nowhere to be found, surprise surprise. Aranea was sitting silently next to Jake and Porrim. The final member of the gang, a twenty-seven year old who insists on being called AR instead of his actual name, Arthur, stands against the wall. He always stands ramrod straight, something you could never fathom doing. You love slouching too much.  
  
“What’s this great plan, Master Ampora?” Caliborn asked in a mocking tone. “Are we going to sign a treaty with them? Talk it out? Because I’d rather not lose a man again to your sad half-formed plans.” He said, his voice becoming bitter. They lost their best man last time they’d tried to take over Vriska’s gang. The man was amazing with knives. His name was extremely long and hard to pronounce, so they’d settled for calling him WV. The room is silent for a long moment, and then Ampora sighs.  
  
“That,” he begins slowly, “was not my fault.”  
  
“Bull.” Karkat said, shaking his head. “You sent him in with no backup, no plan, and no chance of survival. It was entirely your fault.” You winced. God, he’s loud. You take a moment to examine him, his haughty, glaring expression, and pale skin that’s becoming redder by the minute. He always turns beet red when he’s agitated. So basically all the time. His dark hair keeps dipping into his face, and he seemed to have given up on pushing it back.  
  
Peixes turned her head to look at Karkat, and completely drenched you in her tangled mane she called hair. You sputtered and leaned away, trying to find your way out of the forest.  
  
“Oh, gosh, I’m sorry!” She said in her high, trilling voice. She pulled her hair over her opposing shoulder, chagrinned. You smiled at her. Peixes was a good girl, and you valued her as a friend. You could usually count on her when things got tough with John and the gang, and she helped you when you couldn’t tell John about the gang.  
  
“You guys are getting off the point!” Ampora yelled, crossing his arms, looking irritated. It went silent in the room. “We’re going to pick them off, one by one until they submit.” He said quietly. “We’ll have to start high. I’m thinking we’ll start with Zahhak. He’s their best hit man, and it may take a few of us to take him down.”  
  
“A few?” You said incredulously. “That’s the stupidest plan I’ve ever heard. Zahhak’s a beast.” You said, hoping to talk some sense into him. You really didn’t want to see any more dead gang members, and this plan was borderline suicidal.  
  
He raised a brow. “If you’re too chicken for the job, that’s your business. There’s a reason you’re not a hit man, Strider.”  
  
Dirk arched a brow behind his pointed sun glasses. “And what does that make me?” He asked. Jake’s eyes darted to Dirk, and then to the ground. Jake was definitely over the moon for Dirk, but he didn’t want anyone to know, apparently.  
  
Ampora frowned. Dirk abstained from killing, as you did, but handled just about everything else. Definitely vital to the gang. Even Ampora steered away from insulting Dirk.  
  
“You have your reasons.” He argued.  
  
“And so does my bro, so lay off.” He said, crossing his arms. Ampora sighed loudly and shook his head.  
  
“Any volunteers for the mission?” He asked. A total of four hands raised. AR, Jack, Jake, and Caliborn. The usual. Jake always agreed to go, even though it tore him up inside. You still don’t understand why he chooses to do it to himself. Jack and Caliborn go because killing excites them for some reason. He usually avoided them, because you’d have to be a sick puppy to enjoy something like that. AR went simply out of loyalty to Ampora. Apparently Ampora saved his life once in a sticky situation with another rival gang, and ever since then, AR followed Ampora’s instructions no matter how dumb.  
  
You traded a look with Peixes, and you both shook your head in exasperation. You were glad to see you were both on the same page for this one. You usually were when it came to him. You both agreed that he was a psychopathic pajama wearing superhero-wannabe.  
  
“Alright, and I’ll join you.” Ampora said. “We outnumber him five to one, and we will easily be able to overpower him, no matter how strong he is.” His voice was so full of confidence. You shook your head. Someone was definitely going to die.  
  
“Meeting is over.” He said finally, sitting down.  
  
Everyone stood at once, and filed out. You walked out behind Peixes and Latula, who were having a conversation about the differences of surfing and skateboarding. You filed out behind them and texted John, telling him you were on your way. His response was brief.  
  
‘Ok.’  
  
This was going to be a long day.


	5. Decisions

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> John and Dave talk about their options

That afternoon, after you’d returned from the meeting, you came to find John sitting at the grand piano his dad had lugged over to your house when you’d first decided to move in together. He was glaring intently down at the keys as he banged out a harsh sounding melody. He was so focused, you knew he hadn’t heard you come in. You paused at the door, setting aside your keys and wallet and kicked off your shoes, listening to the stormy melody. He was pissed, you knew. He only played that type of music when he was really angry. 

You carefully walked over, your socks making almost no noise on the carpet. You set your hand on his shoulder, and he jumped. He looked back at you, blue eyes wide in surprise.   
“Dave!” He said. He stood up, and gave you a tight smile. “How was your day?” He asked. 

You looked at him, contemplatively, debating if you should tell him. You knew it would help if you told him a little bit of what was going on, but you weren’t sure what Ampora would do if he found out. Probably kill you both. You sighed. “You really wanna know?” You asked. “You know you can’t tell anyone if I tell you details.” You said. His eyes brightened immediately, and he nodded.

“Of course!” He said, nodding eagerly. You nodded slowly.

“Alright, come on, let’s sit down and I’ll tell you about my day.” you said, plopping down on the couch. He sat next to you, leaning against you, and you started talking while you stroked his midnight black hair. You told him all about Ampora, everyone else in the gang, about your friendship with Feferi, and eventually, about your day and Ampora’s plan that took the cake of stupid plans. 

John listened with rapt attention the entire time, smiling and making disgusted noises at the right points. When you finished explaining his plan, John’s eyes widened. “You’re not going to be a part of that, are you?” He asked, his eyes tight with worry. 

You raised a brow. “Of course not. I’m not gonna off a guy for something as stupid as that, John. I’m never part of those missions, and I don’t want to be.” 

John nodded. “Well, at least that’s good.” 

“How was your day, John?” You asked. You’d been talking for almost an hour, you wanted to hear him talk for a while. 

“Well, Jade called me. Apparently her dog has something caught in his stomach and it’s causing problems, so I’m gonna drive her to the vet tomorrow since she only has her motorcycle.” He explained. “Then Kanaya called, because Rose’s birthday is the day after tomorrow, and we’re all going to chip in to get her that set of fountain pens she’s been wanting, idea courtesy of Kanaya. Plus our anniversary is next week, just in case you forgot, and I have to go with dad to the doctor on Monday, since he needs to get that surgery for his arm.” John said. He exhaled, and shook his head. “Plus I have like, nine assignments for film class due next week.” 

You smiled at him and turned so you could rub his shoulders. “How about I help out a bit?” He asked. “I can take Jade to the vet, and I’ll take our share of money to Kanaya. And of course I remember our anniversary, dork.” You said, leaning forward to nip his neck. “How could I forget that you’ve officially put up with me for four years?” 

He laughed, like he always did when you nipped at him. He found it incredibly silly. “Well, that would help a lot...” He said. 

“There you go. Now you have plenty of time to get your work done for school.” You said, smiling, kissing his cheek. You leaned a bit closer, pressing your cheek against his, and you waited. He was still much too tense. He didn’t react for a moment, before suddenly giggling. 

“What are you doing, Dave?” He asked. 

“Shhh, I’m absorbing your stress.” You replied, closing your eyes as though you were concentrating. He broke into a fit of giggles, pushing you away, and you grinned at him, glad he seemed to be relaxing a bit. “Does this mean I can sleep in the bed again, or am I still exiled to the couch?” You asked, giving him your best pout. He tapped his chin, as though he were thinking it over.

“I guess you can come back to the bed. I mean, it is pretty cold without you there.” He replied, smirking.

“Hell yes.” You said, throwing your hand in the air in victory. You leaned forward and planted an exuberant kiss on his lips. 

He grinned and pulled your sunglasses off. He hated when you wore them inside for some reason, especially when you were kissing. You didn’t care for it either, since his glasses always clanked against yours and somewhat halted the moment. He leaned over and gave you a more in depth kiss, pushing you back against the couch. You pulled back to give him your trademark grin. 

“So you’re definitely not angry at me anymore, right?” 

“Nah.” He replied, leaning forward again. You tilted your head back, and he stopped again, frowning. 

“Well, I was just thinking.” You said slowly. “Do you want me to quit the gang? I mean... It always makes you upset.”

John leaned back, looked shocked. He got off of you and sat down, looking at you, confused. “Can you just... leave?” He asked.

 

“Well, no. I doubt he’d let me just leave. But we could leave. We could move, to another country if you want. Somewhere far away, after you finish school. We could go to New Zealand. That’s where all the cool films are shot anyway.” You said. 

John shook his head slowly. “I don’t think... I mean... That’s so... sudden. We don’t make enough money to do that, Dave. We have friends here. We have so much here.” 

You looked down, biting your lip. “Yeah, I figured as much. You’re just... so unhappy with me, you know?” You said slowly. John grabbed your chin and firmly pulled it so you were facing him dead on. He glared at you, his blue eyes like a stormy ocean. 

“What.” He said. 

“I just... Maybe it would be better if... If you don’t have to deal with me anymore.” You mutter, looking anywhere but him. 

“You just told me you’d do all these things for me and that we’re going to have a great anniversary, and you finally trusted me enough to tell me about your other life... and now you’re trying to break up with me?” He asked, his eyes narrowing.

“No, God no, I’m not breaking up with you. I was just wondering if you... y’know. Ever thought it’d be better if you didn’t have to deal with me and all my problems.” You said slowly. 

“Dave. You are the most important person in my entire life, alright? You balance me out, calm me down, and you can always bring a smile to my face no matter what the situation. No, I don’t like the fact that you’re in a gang, but that’s not something I’d break up with you over!” He said, exasperated. 

You nodded slowly. You didn’t need much convincing. You knew John could never lie to you, and even when he tried, it never worked. You smiled. 

“Can we go back to kissing then? That was pretty nice.” You said, and he rolled his eyes. 

“I guess so, so long as you promise there’s no more of this break-up talk.” John said. You nodded, and he grinned, leaning forward. And you began where you left off.


	6. Mistakes.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “You wanna drop in on Dirk? He’s been badgering me about meeting you.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry it's taken so long to get this updated! Just haven't had the motivation, I'm afraid! ;~;

Today was a lazy day. You were lounging out across the couch, your glasses on the table beside you. Your eyes were closed, your head hanging off the edge of the couch. John was playing some music on his piano in the corner, and you could tell he was into it. You listened with the smallest hint of a smile on your lips, glad you and he were well off again. 

You sat up as an idea came to you, and opened your eyes. John’s hands paused on the keys, and he looked back to you. “Problem?” He asked.

“Idea.” You responded. You stood up. “You wanna drop in on Dirk? He’s been badgering me about meeting you.” You say.

You know it’s weird that after all the years you’ve known John, you’ve managed to keep him away from your only living family member. It wasn’t by coincidence. You’ve always been a little resentful towards Dirk. He didn’t exactly give you the best childhood, but to be fair, he’s only eight years older than you. You came to terms with the fact that Dirk did the best he could a year ago, but you still didn’t want John around him. If you’re going to be honest, you didn’t want Dirk to scare John off. 

Dirk was abrasive in every sense of the way. He had managed, in some way or another, to frighten off all of your friends since you were young. It wasn’t on purpose, of course, but it didn’t change the fact that he did it. 

John blinks, turning around all the way on his piano bench. “You’re not serious?” He asks. He knows your reservations about your brother.   
“I am.” You reply. “I’m gonna take a shower, and we can head out, so get ready.” You tell him. He nods, his lips breaking out into a lovely buck-toothed grin. He stands and hurries into his room. 

You take a shower and change into your better clothes. Your nice black jeans and your favorite record shirt with the long red sleeves. You put on your shades and walk out, tousling your hair with a towel only to be met with the sight of a shirtless John. You blink.

“I can’t find a shirt!” John wails, sounding very much like a teenage girl. You snort, and walk over to his closet, pulling out a black shirt with his silly ghost busters looking logo on it.

“Wear this.” You tell him, throwing it to him. You pull out your phone while he pulls on the shirt and text Dirk, telling him to expect a visit. He texts back, telling you to come over whenever. You drag John out the door.

Twenty minutes later, you’re walking him up to the doorway of your brother’s apartment. It’s not very luxurious, but no one expects it to be. You pull out the spare key he gave you and unlock the door, not bothering to knock. You’ve never given him a key to you and John’s apartment, and he never asked for one. John said he found it kind of sad, but you don’t care. You and your brother know where you stand as far as everything goes. He knows you hold a bit of ill will towards him, but are working your way through it. You know he’s just trying the best he can to be the older brother you want. 

You walk inside, John following you. He shuts the door behind him and locks it. You see Dirk sitting on the couch, his legs crossed. 

“Sup.” He says neutrally. You give him a nod.

“This is John Egbert, my boyfriend of four years. John, this is Dirk.” You say. They both know each other by what you’ve said, but considering this is the first time they’ve met face to face, it seems appropriate than you introduce them. 

Dirk seems to size John up from behind his aviators. His expression doesn’t give much away. “Not bad, little bro. You could definitely do worse.” He finally says. John blinks, seemingly debating whether or not it’s a compliment or not. 

Finally deciding, as he always does, that it’s a compliment, he smiles. “Nice to meet you, Dirk.” He says, holding out his hand for Dirk to shake. 

Dirk looks down at it, seemingly surprised by the gesture, and grips John’s hand, shaking it. 

You’re tenser than you’ve ever been, just waiting for something to happen. You watch as John sits down next to him on the couch, seemingly completely at ease. He smiles. “Isn’t this the part where you talk about Dave’s childhood and show me baby pictures and stuff?” He asks. 

“No.” You tell him, shaking your head. 

“Actually, as per every romantic comedy ever, it is.” Dirk says, a smirk gracing his lips. “You know, he was the cutest baby. I was like eight when the little sucker was born.” He tells John. “He could never say my name right, so he kept calling me Dirt.” He says, chuckling. He stands to his feet, walking over to a closet. He rummages through it for a few minutes before pulling out a photo album. He smirks deviously, and you feel your stomach drop to your feet.

“Good God, the man actually has baby pictures.” You say in horror. John grins, and scoots closer to Dirk when he sits down so he can see. You quickly drop next to him so you can do some damage control. 

The next ten minutes are filled with the horror of the photo album which has every embarrassing picture from you in the tub, (John made the tasteless joke of saying your manhood really wasn’t much bigger now than it was then) (Dirk still hasn’t stopped laughing), to you in your gawky teen stage. He even has pictures from that play where you played a Wendy in your middle school production of Peter Pan. (Long story.)

John is practically in tears by the end of the album, and you’re precisely the shade of a ripe tomato. When you’re all calm enough to see clearly again, Dirk starts peppering John with questions about what he does, what he plans to do with his life, why he chose to do it, what his hobbies are. John his answering everything with grace, and you’re glad this is going so well. No one’s stepped on any toes, except yours. But that’s how it’s supposed to be.

Dirk finally looks over to you and raises a brow. He leans over before asking you quietly, “How much does he know about the gang?” 

“Everything.” You respond, biting your lip. 

He arches a brow, and looks back to John. He looks back to you, his expression dubious. “Why?” He asks.

“I trust him.” You reply quietly. “I know, it was stupid, but trust me when I say he needed to know.”

“Needed to know what?” The voice is cold and calculating. AR stands in the entrance to the room. His yellow eyes, made so by contacts, are narrowed. His head is tilted to the side, his dark hair hanging in his face. He is tall and strong. And you know he just heard everything. 

“He needed to know about my gawky adolescence phase.” You say, your voice equally cold. His eyes narrow further. 

“Of course. Perhaps the boss needs to know about it, too.” He says, clearly threatening you. 

“He doesn’t have any interest in my personal life.” You respond. 

“Oh, but he does. Very much so, Strider.” He tells you. He turns towards the door and leaves, the door shutting hard behind him. John’s anxious gaze is on you, and Dirk’s knuckles are white.

“I didn’t know he was still here.” Dirk says, his voice unnerved. “I thought he left half an hour ago with Jake.” 

“Well, he didn’t.” You respond icily. “And know he’s going to tell fish-for-brains all about it. Come on, John, we’re leaving.”

John makes a noise of protest. 

“Now!” You almost shout. You stalk off to the car, John following after you with an apologetic glance at Dirk. Dirk puts his head in his hands in response. You throw open the passenger door for John, as you always do, even if you’re angry, and he gets in. You shut the door behind him and stalk to the passenger seat, dropping into it. You drive back to the house, an awful feeling in your gut.


	7. Fighting Fire with Fire

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Scourge Gang decides how to respond to their newest attack.

_At Scourge Gang Hideout_

“NO!” Her voice rings out, loud and demanding. Her metal arm smashes against the table, and a fissure appears in the woodwork. She has just received news that her best hit man, and while she would never admit it, friend, is dead.

Another young woman with ginger hair and a white red-tipped cane is trying to console her. Her raspy voice is quiet compared to the blonde leader’s voice. “Vriska, we knew something was going to happen.”

“That makes it worse! We should have known they’d go for him, those idiots would go for him! Idiots, idiots. I didn’t know Eridan would be so utterly stupid!”

A grave voice rings out, the obvious lisp distorting it. “On the pluth thide, we can officially declare war on thoth thupid piethes of crap.” The voice belongs to a brunette boy, lanky and sallow with dirty yellow eyes.

“I’ll run em through myshellf.” This low voice belongs to a girl riddled with piercings, whose weapons of choice is a body-sized trident. No one really understands the dark-haired girls fascination with fish and the ocean, but she’s so handy with the trident, no one really wants to patronize her about it.

“This is going to kill her.” The voice is soft, belonging to a girl with copious amounts of black hair. Her eyes are a startling shade of almost burgundy.

“What?” Vriska asks sharply.

The girl, Aradia, looks up. “Meulin said ‘This is going to kill her.’” She says without further explanation.

Meulin, a pretty girl with black hair who is entirely deaf, looks around at the people looking at her. She quickly signs out something else that only three people in the group can translate. Kurloz, a silent man who likes to stitch his lips together, Aranea, who knows everything, and Aradia, who learned just to speak to Meulin and Kurloz.

“Kill who?” Vriska demanded.

“Nepeta.” Aradia replied, her voice monotone. It went entirely silent in the small room as everyone thought of the small black-haired girl who Equius never stopped speaking of, even at meetings. He had been up front in the fact that he would tell her about what happened, whether they liked it or not, so she knew. Vriska wasn’t as strict about secrecy as her gang counterpart was.

The girl was everything to him, and he was everything to her. Meulin wasn’t lying, it would destroy the innocent girl who made cat puns at every turn.

The blonde gang leader places her head in her hands, and sighs loudly. “Who’s going to tell her? We can’t let the police do it, they won’t understand.”

Calliope, a girl with short silver hair and a kind face volunteers. “I will. She needs someone she knows...” The girl’s soft voice trails off, and Terezi nods.

“Callie would be best.” She says. “Should Meulin go with her?” She asks softly, looking at Meulin. The dark haired girl shakes her head vigorously, reading the girls lips.

“She shook her head no.” Vriska tells her blind second in command who nods curtly. “Alright then, Callie, head off now. We don’t need you for our planning, anyway.” She tells her. Callie nods, and hurries out the door.

There’s a moment of absolute silence as they debate how to handle the situation. Vriska nods slowly, looking up at her crew. “Well, we’ll have to fight fire with fire.” She declares suddenly.

“They’re most important member is Caliborn.” Aradia translates. “Or perhaps that fellow with the yellow eyes.”

“AR is definitely more important that Caliborn. But you can bet they both had a hand in this. I want both of them taken out. Kurloz, Damara, you’re on Caliborn. Terezi, Fish-girl and I are on AR. We’re not losing any more of our members, so if you don’t think you can take them at the time, don’t try it. We clear?” She asks. Her voice is gruff and serious.

There’s a collective nod, and they broke off into groups to coordinate. Kurloz is signing furiously, and Aradia is translating. Vriska didn’t quite think of the fact that the heavily accented girl and the boy who didn’t speak would have a little bit of trouble communicating. She frowns. “Aradia, will you go with them?” She asked. The girl nodded, not sparing a second glance at Vriska as she set to her duty of translations.

“So, we know their schedules, and we know we can take them. We know almost all of the members, right? All but three.” Vriska’s voice is serious as she talks to Terezi and Meenah. She walks up the corkboard they used to keep track of the other game, holding the hierarchy of the gang. Eridan is on top, with Feferi second. They know all of the members and their duties except for three they haven’t been able to get names on. One is a stately looking raven-haired woman with tattoos all over, another is a greaser looking man with an odd scar on his temple, and lastly a man with red eyes and dark hair.

“So we know AR’s their metal man, so he’s sure to be packing something. We’ll have to strike fast and, ideally, from far away.”

Suddenly, a the door to your hideout is flung open, and the esteemed leader is tackled to the ground. The attacker’s voice tears from her body, so loud it’s painful.

“You promised me he would be safe!”

All at once, it becomes clear that the attacker is Nepeta Leijon. She’s a small girl with short auburn hair and stunning olive eyes. She is hitting and scratching at the fearless leader who isn’t fighting back. She knows she deserves this and more from her. Nepeta stops her ruthless attacks, and stares at the blonde, her chest heaving.

“You _promised._ ” She says, her voice intense. She repeats this several more times as Callie gently pulls her away and wraps her arms around the girl.

Callie gives an apologetic look to Vriska as if to say ‘I tried to stop her.’ Vriska slowly sits up, looking at Nepeta. “I know I promised, Nepeta. I am... truly sorry.”

“Your apologies are worthless.” Was her short reply. “Does your apology bring back my friend? Does it bring back his silly horse puns, or his sweaty towels? Does it bring back his ridiculous muscles and weird hierarchy obsession?” She asks. “Does it bring my Equius back?” Her voice breaks, and she turns her face back into Callie’s chest for a long moment. When she resurfaces, her expression is cold.

“You’re going to kill the men that did this, aren’t you?” She asks. This, at least, the leader can promise.

“Or die trying.”


	8. So Close.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Basically everything hits the fan.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, so this fic is pretty much winding down at this point! We're almost the end. Six chapters at most, probably. I wanna thank you all who commented and liked this! You guys are positively amazing, and I'm glad you've stuck with me this long.

_John_

You’ve never seen Dave this angry before. He drove you home in absolute silence. He throws open the front door and gestures you in with one short jerk of his hand. You’re surprised he still manages to be polite when he’s this angry. You step inside and turn to him. “Dave, you know he didn’t—“

You’re cut off by his angry lips against yours. You barely have time to react as your pushed against the wall, his lips on yours almost painfully. You throw your palms out, pushing him back a bit. “Ow, Dave!” You complain. He chucks his sunglasses off to the side, and you see the wild emotion in his eyes. Desperation, almost.

“Sorry.” He mutters, sounding not sorry at all.

“So what if Eridan knows I know? What’s he gonna do, kill me?”

That is the wrong thing to say. Dave’s eyes become horrified.

“Yes.” He whispers.

Oh.

“But I won’t let them. Do you hear me, John? I will not let them hurt you.” His voice is a growl, his red eyes are intense. You frown.

“Dave...” You say desperately. You suddenly remember something. “We can leave!” You say suddenly. You grab his hand tightly. “We can leave! Go to New Zealand, remember? You said we could go, you said we could run away. We can still do that!”

He blinks.

“We can?” He asks you. His eyes are so wide, his lips are parted and he looks like someone has thrown him a life-raft. He grabs you again, more gently, and plants a firm kiss on your lips. “You’re the smartest,” He kisses your forehead, “most amazing,” Your cheek, “most resourceful,” Your lips, “boyfriend in the world.”

He turns on his heel and dives for the bedroom, ripping open dresser drawers. You jump to his pace, grabbing things out of the bathroom and shoving them into the suitcase Dave tossed onto the table for you. You start throwing smaller things that you can take with you into the case, such as your sheet music and Dave’s soundboard. It’s not much, but you’re sure you can find a way to come back for your other things. You reach out, grab the edge of the fridge and with a loud groan, dislodge it from its position against the wall, pulling it out. You reach behind it and pull out a zip-lock bag full of cash, tossing it into the suitcase.

You turn to see Dave looking at you curiously. “How long has that been there?” He asks curiously. You blush.

“Well, it wasn’t a secret, exactly.” You tell him. “I’ve been adding to it since we got the apartment, just in case. It’s probably up near four thousand, now.”

You can see that he’s confused. “Wait. Just in case of what?” He asks. “Just in case you wanted to leave?”

You blink. The idea really hadn’t occurred to you that you’d leave. “No!” You say, surprised. “I meant in case we did something stupid or went over budget on accident or something.”

He blinks, and slowly nods. “Well. Okay, then. Do you have everything you need?” He asks. You nod. You’re mostly resigned to the fact that you’ll have to drop out of school or transfer. If there’s a film school in New Zealand. Either way, if you make this move you won’t have enough money to go. That’s all there is to it.

You feel pain lance through your heart as you think of forgetting your dream. But you don’t have a choice. The only choice you’d have at this point is to leave Dave, and that’s not a choice at all. He shoves open the front door, and you’re met with a man you’ve never seen before. He’s tall, with pale skin and the most ridiculous outfit you’ve ever seen. You didn’t know people actually wore capes.

You know this must be Eridan, and you freeze. Dave is frozen as well. His eyes, still bare, convey the shock and hopelessness that he feels. AR stands behind him, a smug look on his face. Eridan’s hand lays on his hip, and oh god you just know he has a gun he has a _gun_ and before anyone can move he’s in your house and the yellow guy is grabbing Dave and everything is going so wrong all at once and you can’t see anything but purple and then all there is is pain.


	9. Anger.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Yup, Dave's a beast.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We're definitely winding down faster than I thought. I think maybe two more chapters at most. :o

_Dave_

John’s in danger, and it’s all your fault.

Everything went wrong, so so fast. You almost had him in the car, you almost had him to safety. You were so _close._

You flung open the door and were met with none other than Eridan and AR.

“Wwell, wwell wwell.” He says. John looks like he’s got a loading symbol in his brain, and you can tell he has no idea what’s happening. Eridan has his hand on his hip, and you can see the gleam of the gun he carries around. AR has a knife, you’re sure. Suddenly, he’s muscling past you, and he’s _in your house_ and you’re seeing _red._

You’re so angry you can’t think straight, but you know you see so much more than John does. You always see more than John does. You whirl around, faster than the eye can see to rip this pretentious little _twig_ into pieces, but suddenly AR is there.

You forgot he moved just as fast as you, and suddenly you’re both a blur as you attack each other. You hear John scream, and you know you don’t have much time. You have to neutralize both of them before John is seriously hurt. You just hope to God he doesn’t shoot your love before you get the chance. You can see every move before he makes, and he can see every move before you make it.

You don’t have time for this stalemate.

You decide to fight dirty. You kick him in the groin.

He flinches and drops to his knees. You can tell even though he’s in pain, that won’t be enough. You solidify it with a hard kick to his head. You hear something crack, and you hope to God you didn’t just kill someone but you don’t have time to worry about it, because Ampora is laughing.

John is sobbing.

This is not okay.

When you turn on Eridan, you see John curled up on the ground, Eridan kicking him, laughing loudly. It’d be obnoxious if it didn’t make you literally angry enough to kill.

You grab him by his disgustingly greasy hair, lift him in the air, and slam him down on the coffee table. It shatters, and his laughter cuts off abruptly. You’re on him before he can catch his breath, slamming your fist into his face over and over.

“Do. Not. Touch. John.” You growl with each hit. When you’re reasonably sure he’s not going to move, you jump up and hurry to John’s side. He doesn’t look all that great. His nose is more crooked than usual and his eyes, the color of the sky, are hazy. You see blood in other places, but you can’t think of that right now.

“John. John. Look at me, alright?”

You hear a slam, and whirl around.

Oh, god dammit. A girl with a metal arm and another with a cane sword stand in the door. They’re obviously from Scourge Gang. They came in swinging, and now they seemed a bit nonplussed since they’re quarry was passed out.

“I’m calling nine one one now, so either clear the hell out or deal with it.” You growl.

“What are you gonna tell them?” Metal-arm asks.

“What happened. Two stupid bastards broke into my house, and I dealt with it how I saw fit. Now, do you want it to be four stupid bastards, or are you going to _leave?”_ There’s a curt nod, and they turn on their heels, peeling out.

You know it’s only a temporary reprieve. They’ll come back for them later. You really could not care less. You look to John. You grab your phone out of your pocket and dial quickly. When they answer you say, “My name is David Strider, I’ve had a home invasion. My boyfriend is hurt and the attackers are unconscious.” You say without preamble. You give them the address when they ask, and do as they tell you for John. you’re pressing a blanket to the man’s worst wound, which is a thick gash on his arm. He’s biting his lip, but you take that as a good sign. He’s awake even if he’s not talking.

The door is wide open, so you don’t have to open it when the medics arrive. You trade places with an EMT and they tell you that you can get in the ambulance, since they need to know things about him.

You jump in the back, and sit down in the free place where you think you’ll be out of the way.

“What’s his name?” The EMT asks.

“John. Jonathan Egbert.”

“Age?”

“Twenty-two.”

“DOB?”

“April thirteenth.”

The questions continue, as they work over him. He’s mumbling something now, and oh, you think it’s your name.

“I’m right here, John. Right here. I’m not gonna leave you, don’t worry about it.” You tell him, placing your hand gently on his ankle. You can feel him relax.

Your really, really hope he’s going to be okay.


	10. The End

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Last chapter! Thank you all for reading and I apologize for being so spotty about updating it. >_

_Dave_

You hate suits.

You really, really hate suits. Especially fancy suits. And you hate not being able to wear your sunglasses. Apparently, court doesn’t approve of them.

Apparently, court is a thing you have to do. Like with a jury. And a judge. With you wasting your money on a lawyer trying to spin self-defense.

Apparently, when you slammed that stupid fish-boy on the table, a piece of glass went into the back of his neck.

Apparently, even if they could’ve saved him from suffocating or drowning in his own blood, he would’ve been paralyzed. You think that would’ve been poetic justice, but you suppose drowning in his own blood is punishment enough.

Your lawyer is a stuffy man with a hawkish face. He has sharp eyes and a sharp nose to match. You’re pretty confident in his ability to defend you, but you don’t want to go to court. That means leaving John. It’s been a month since the accident, and John is still in physical therapy, although he’s been allowed to go home. You remember when he finally woke up, a week after the incident. You were at his side the second his eyes opened.

“John?” You asked frantically. You’d had a few false alarms, and you weren’t sure if he was actually awake or not.

He looked confused as he stared at you. “Dave...?” He asked slowly. You almost sobbed. Well, you would have, if you were in a soap opera or something. And a female. And not a cool Strider.

You just dropped your head to the bed in staggering relief and took his hand. You resurfaced because you wanted to see him again, to assure that he was awake. “Where are my glasses? Where are _your_ glasses? Where are we?” He asked, rapid fire. “What happened to Cape-guy? And that other one? Who were those other people? What are we gonna do now?”

“Oh my God, Egbert, you’ve been awake for four seconds. I’ll let you know what’s going on in a second. Just let me enjoy the fact that you’re not dead, okay?” You told him. He laughed. Leave it to John to be talkative as all get out right after being in an essential coma.

He frowned. “This hurts.” He said slowly.

“What does?” You asked, hovering over the call button.

“Breathing.” He replied. “What happened again?”

You took a slow breath. “Short version, we were gonna leave, Eridan and AR broke in, and I... I took care of it. AR disappeared, and Eridan is... Well, I have a court date in a few weeks. It’s self-defense. The two girls in the door were from Scourge. They left shortly after they arrived.” You said, trying to keep it short.

He stared at you, wide-eyed, and you felt the worry set in. Was he scared of you now?

“That’s... You... You killed him? For hurting me?” He asked.

You smirked. “Don’t get a swelled head, darling. I’d a done it eventually anyway.”

He rolled his eyes. “Why can’t we have movie moments like the cute couples do?”

“Because I’m a Strider?” You proposed. He laughed.

The two of you talked for the next four hours about everything and nothing. You told him how the gang had essentially dissipated, some of the members entering Scourge gang, others disappearing entirely, and some simply going back to living their lives, no longer trapped into staying by Ampora. Peixes came and visited John in the hospital the next day, and you were proud to introduce her as your friend.

“David.” The lawyer said, getting your attention. “We go on in ten.”

You roll your eyes. “Alright, fine. Let’s just get this over with.” You mutter.

The lawyer grabs your arm and frowns. “Alright kid, I didn’t wanna ask but I gotta. Was this actually self-defense?”

“If the definition of self-defense is that he entered my home without permission, hurt someone I love, and I killed him, then yes.” You reply starkly. “I’m not sorry I did it, however, so if you’re trying to spin that, let me know and I’ll cry a little or whatever.” You tell him.

You can see the shudder that runs down his spine. The little worm is terrified of you. You almost find it funny. “Right. Well, I don’t much care if you’re sorry or not. We’re going to focus on the fact that he forced his way into your house, and you reacted accordingly. The other side is going to attack your credibility, so--.”

You sigh again. “I really don’t _care_.” You mutter. “Just let me know what I’m supposed to do, thanks.”

“Alright then, Mr. Strider. Just answer the questions accordingly when you’re called up. Since you didn’t do it, don’t lie and you’ll be fine.”

The whole court scene was boring as hell. You focused on being polite, though, and told the truth. For the most part. You pretended you had no idea why they invaded your house, and said the pair of you were friends.

The case took a lovely three hours to get through all the stupid things. They called witnesses, and they deliberated for five hours. You were surprised to receive a verdict of innocence via self-defense. You really had been expecting jail-time, but hey, you’re certainly not complaining.

When you go home, you’re going back to John, after all. 


End file.
